Tour de "Oh my God, my back hurts!"
Davis 200 K
131. 9 miles
4800 feet of climbing
4 pounds lost :eek:
Bad mix of Sustain and Gatorade, too much Gatorade, lead to stomach issues early on.
Andy, the fireman from Seattle, pulled me all the way to the base of Cardiac. Thank you Andy! Andy looked really familiar to me. I've never been to Seattle, but he's been to Walnut Creek and was at the last Rivendell camp out. It really is a small world. He was in Davis to apply for a position at the university. Talking with him kept my mind off my stomach. Andy left me in the dust at Cardiac, and I rode essentially by myself, into a headwind, to the turnaround at the Pope Valley Grange. I did have a little chat with Lisa and Alfie as they passed me on their fixed gears. Towards the end I was having to conserve my water as my ice hadn't melted yet. At the turnaround, I ate half a banana, drank the Red Bull I had been carrying with me and 2/3 of a Sprite, called Thom, refilled my bottles and headed out.
I had a pretty good tailwind back to Cardiac. I played leapfrog with Andy. He caught up to me after lunch. I passed him while he was stopped at a store. He caught up to me again on Cardiac, scared the bejeesus out of me that time. I was in my own little world, climbing, when he he said hello. I think I jumped six inches! It's a a good thing I have helium in my tires. :p I passed him when he stopped at a picnic area. He caught me for the last time when I stopped at a little store. The store did not have any regular Red Bull. :( I made do with a lemonade and bought some peanut M&Ms. I was still having stomach issues and was hoping non "funny food" would sit a little better.
After my stop at the store, I had 30 miles to go and I was pretty miserable for many of them. The roads were flat, but twisted in different directions going around farms, sometimes I had a headwind, sometimes a tailwind. But my upper back was killing me! I felt like my vertebrae were being squashed into each other.
My strategy to get through this section was every time a car passed me I would stretch out my back as best I could. It wrecked havoc on my average speed to coast so much. The last ten miles I could not find a position on the bike that didn't hurt my back. I eventually undid the zipper fully on my vest and that helped a bit. I've come to the conclusion that my AV vest constricts my shoulders too much. I had the same problem, although not quite so painfully, on last week's ride.
I don't usually lose any weight when I ride. I'm pretty good about staying hydrated and I definitely drank more than normal yesterday. I didn't get a dehydration headache, so I'm not sure what's up with my weight. But I wouldn't mind if they stayed gone. Oh, and that was 4 pounds AFTER getting dinner at Jack in the Box!
V.
Benicia Bike Club passes Davis 200KM
V & Jo- We were all trying to figure out what the heck ride you all were on! We were doing our annual Spring Moxie- a version of the Fall Foxy. We started out from the Rockville cafe and came around Berryessa clockwise (the easy way). I saw you Jo, and I think I waved, but I didn't know it was you until we got to Lake Solano and one of the SAG guys (Kimball) gave me the message from you.
I had left Moskowitz corner ahead of the "big dawgs" as I wanted to get to Lake Solano park and bathrooms sooner than later. Had you said something, our guys would have been happy to SAG you! At least it was nice out yesterday, but not much going on over there where you ended up. :(:( We would have loved your company at the Solano park. :D:D
I agree with both of you-if the ride ceases to be fun, it's not worth it. Back aches on a bike are absolutely no fun. Been there, know that horrible feeling.
We all enjoyed our ride- I especially loved the wildflowers that are coming into bloom and (of course) that fun climb up Cantelow.:p:p Then again, we only did slightly over 100KMs so who am I to complain.
Yes, Veronica, it is good to have someone to talk with-does help us when we're feeling miserable. Congrats on finishing in spite of it all.
Since I've retired this year, I seem to have less and less interest in doing long rides. I"m happy with my metrics twice a week and my climb up Diablo once a week. Seems like I don't have prove anything to myself anymore. Perhaps this is what you are also saying.
